SOCHI, Russia — It was a bittersweet day for Canada’s Olympic short-track speedskating team.

Gold-medal hopeful Charles Hamelin crashed out of the 500-metre heats on Tuesday, but within the hour Canada’s women’s 3,000-metre relay team won a silver medal.

“We feel great. We are really happy to have got the silver medal,” said speedskater Jessica Hewitt. “I have never been on an (Olympic) podium before and we have worked very hard for this.”

South Korea won gold in the women’s relay with a time of four minutes 9.498 seconds, followed closely by China. However, the Chinese were disqualified because their skaters did not immediately leave the track after passing off to their teammates.

That bumped the Canadian team of Marie-Eve Drolet, Hewitt, Valerie Maltais and Marianne St-Gelais up from third place. Canada’s final time was 4:10.641.

“We tried a different strategy here; making the exchange on different corners, so it got a little messy at times but we did well and then it just so happened that China were disqualified so we got the silver,” said Hewitt. “We tried to put our best foot forward and to be there at the end of the race.”

Canada’s Charles Hamelin crashes with Eduardo Alvarez, of the United States, during the men’s 1,000 metre quarter-finals in the short track competition at the Sochi Winter Olympics Saturday, February 15, 2014 in Sochi.

The disqualification was a role reversal from the 2010 Vancouver Games, when South Korea was disqualified for impeding and China was promoted to the gold medal.

Italy finished well back of the top three teams on Tuesday after one of its skaters fell. The Italians finished in 4:14.014 but earned a bronze medal after China’s penalty.

St-Gelais was eliminated from the women’s 1,000-metre event earlier Tuesday, but Drolet and Maltais advanced to Friday’s quarter-final with the latter setting an Olympic Winter Games record in her qualifying heat.

“Before the relay I was so ready, I was pumped up for the race,” said Maltais. “I was clapping the hands of the girls, tapping their legs, like ‘Let’s go!’

“It is so good for our team to get a medal today. We’ve spent all season on the edge and now we’ve won a medal.”

Earlier, Hamelin — the defending Olympic champion — was leading his 500-metre qualifying heat when he caught a blade on a turn and went down in a heap, crashing into the safety pads on the edge of the ice.

“I don’t know what happened. I could feel my skate give out a little bit,” said Hamelin. “It’s like the ice was breaking under my blades just then, but everything up until that moment was really smooth.

“Short track can be a rude sport. It doesn’t take much to make a person fall.”

Hamelin won gold in the 500-metre event at the 2010 Vancouver Games and was a medal favourite at these Games.

He already earned gold in the 1,500 metres in Sochi and seemed poised to win three more medals.

However, Hamelin also crashed in the 1,000-metre event and Canada’s men’s 5,000-metre relay team failed to advance to the final.

“My gold medal will be my memory. I’ve felt great this whole Games,” said Hamelin. “It’s been a great experience. I’ll remember the ladies in the relay today, too. They really did a great job.”

The crash cleared the way for Sjinkie Knegt of the Netherlands to win the heat. Knegt won his country’s first short track when he took bronze in the 1,000 last weekend.

Olivier Jean of Lachenaie, Que., and Charle Cournoyer of Boucherville, Que., both advanced in the 500.